'Ignore SARS accreditation at your peril'

"APPLYING FOR accreditation with SARS Customs should not be regarded as a "paper-exercise," says Silvan Pillay, trade solutions director at Deloitte & Touche. "Apart from enjoying the benefits of accreditation, the process will reassure senior management that any SARS inspection will not result in surprises and unbudgeted expenditure." Applicants seeking accreditation are required to assess their history of customs compliance with SARS and voluntarily declare any possible non-compliant or outstanding issues. They will need to undertake a detailed and thorough audit of the organisation's customs-related business processes and identify and rectify issues of concern. Anyone conducting an audit must have a thorough knowledge of customs law, policies and procedures. "There is a perception that importers and exporters need not be accredited if their clearing agent achieves an accredited status," says Pillay. "While there is a big advantage in using an accredited clearing agent, importers and exporters must obtain their own accredited status in order to maximise benefits from the concept." Pillay believes that many importers, exporters, and warehouse operators have not yet bought into the accreditation concept. "Some because they're unaware and others because they're not convinced that accredited status would enhance their future business position. "Those not entirely convinced should prepare for increased intervention from SARS and for possible delays and shipment scrutiny when clearing goods through ports. At this point, all accredited importers and exporters will be enjoying trade facilitation on a par with global standards."